Josh Kopelman

Managing Director of First Round Capital.

espite being coastally challenged (currently living in Philadelphia), Josh has been an active entrepreneur and investor in the Internet industry since its commercialization. In 1992, while he was a student at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, Josh co-founded Infonautics Corporation – an Internet information company. In 1996, Infonautics went public on the NASDAQ stock exchange.

Monthly Archives for 2010

Each year First Round Capital interacts with over 3,000 founders. These are amazing people – people who will shape our society and our lives. Every product you use, every store you visit, every restaurant you eat in – all of these things exist because a founder had an idea (and the perseverance to turn the idea into reality).

For the last year, every founder who has entered one of the three First Round Capital offices has been offered a free “Be A Founder” T-shirt. We believe that the world needs more founders – and that founders (not venture capitalists) should be celebrated. That’s why our annual holiday videos showcase the founders in our community. Our First Round Review provides real-world tactical advice to make founders more successful. And that’s why we’ve worked hard to build a culture at First Round Capital that recognizes (and appreciates) the unique role that founders play in the world.

One of the people who has helped build that culture at First Round Capital for almost six years has been Kent Goldman. Kent joined our team right after we raised our first institutional fund -- and has played a pivotal role in our growth and development. He’s helped us reimagine how a venture capital firm could work to help founders win. He’s introduced well over a dozen amazing companies into our community – companies that are having a big impact on the world (and on our results). And a few months ago Kent told me that after spending almost six years helping founders – he wanted to be a founder, by starting his own fund.

In the coming months, Kent will be announcing his plans publicly. But from what he’s shared with me, I’m excited for him. He’s carrying on First Round’s values of community and innovation in a way that is uniquely his own -- and I plan to make a significant personal investment in his fund. All of us at First Round Capital are thrilled for Kent – and will miss his energy, his insight, and his passion. But we understand the allure of “being a founder” – and we wish Kent the best of luck and look forward to working together with him in his new fund.